Wichita eagle., 1887-05-04
ALASKA'S RESOURCES.

Alaska is beginning 10 set up its claims
papers, one published AZ juneau and the
other al Sitks. are equal if not superior to
those of auy place on the Pacific coast.
They are not even back ward in the matter
of referring to their climate as being mild,
healthy and invigorating-
That the territory is rich in min erals
there can be no doubt The Juneau Free
Press, referring to the mineral resources,
states that prospecting so far has been con-
fined to the most accessible places and that
but little has been done to discover and
Law bare the rich veins Of gold and silver
which surely exist in the mountains. In
speaking of the mineral wealth the journal
quoted says:
The lodges range in width from few
feet up to 600 The quartz is generally
of a character that is easily worked. The
mills so far erected and contemplated con-
,ist of stamps, Frue MANNERS and chiorina
ton works. The quartz Is soft and easily
crushed; some of 1t is free milling. and
$ ,me contains large per cent. OF chiorlles
| THE general average per ton ranges from
81 so up to so These are located low
down. some at the very edge OF tide water,
aud Others further back. The richest
quariz is found high up in the basins.
Although but little prospecting has been
on the higher mountains, many rich leads
have been Stumbled onto, and others
found while stripping off the surface
earth in placer mining. The leads high up
are smaller than those below, hut the
quartz is much richer, and nearly all OF it
SHOWS more or less free gold We have
seen specimens Of ten or twelve pounds
weight that were wonderfully rich.
Aside from precious metals. however,
numbering and the fisheries promise to be-
come great industries of Alaska. to say
nothing of the fur trade which will be
eventually controlled by the territory in
stead of foreign corp pralion. Alaska is
the vast timber reserve of the United States,
becoming more and more valuable as the
years 60 by and the forests of other sec
tions of the United States are decima,ed.
To quote again from the Free Press:
All southeastern Alaska from Cape Fox
to the Keuai peninsula is clothed with for
ests denser than anv in Oregon or Wash
10: t II Territory The ,mparariveiy mild
Temperature. the heavy RENTAL and The
nightless days Of the summer season force
everything 10 Il tropical luxriauc, :. The
white spruce, or Si'ka pine, which grows
| TIA height of i5o 10 10 feet, and is
! from 3 to feet in diameter, is the
Common tree in ali these
forests, and Menzies and Merton spruce.
red aud yellow cedar, piuus corcorta, fir.
cotton wood. ash. alder. small maple aud
small birch are the Other trees most ire
qlently met with The red and yellow
cedar are the most valuable woods. aud the
latter, more particularly, is the only good
ship building timber on the Pacific coast
| Its value arises chiefly from the fact that il
is impervius TO The teredo, or bOrin.
worm. which eats up the pine piles under
Puget Sound wharves every two or three
years. Il has line grain and certain
fragrance. This yellow cedar is rarely
found south of the Alaska boundary, and
the largest tracts If 1t are on Kupreanotf,
Kon. and the Prince of Wales island.
1t will be seen that not only are the for
ests immense. but that the quality Of the
timber is excellent ard sure tC come into
demand at an early day.
The fisheries of the territory are as We
undevelaped, but it is known that tisl
Of many species abound liz thes'
northern waters. which will yield boun
teful return TO those engaging in that in
dustry.
The fur trade of Alaska is even now
stated to be worth two and half millioI
dollars annually. and is becoming NOR,
! valuable every year.
On the whole, Alaska has developed
wonderful resources. Until Of late year
its very name has been The synonym O
icebergs, Arctic wastes, and other frIgit
attrbGtes Of the North Pole But the ex
plorer aud the tourist aud the capitals
have discovered that though it bordered OF
the frozen seas of the north. q large part %!
its area was not only inbabitable, but rici
in those resources which form stablt
source Of wealth. Then the newspaper,
| invaded the territory and now that couutly